Doughnut machine



Dec. 3, 1929.- WBEL HAW 1,738,033

DOUGHNUT MACHINE Original Filed May 5, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 L INVENTOR Wd/ier Be/sbaw KW W ATTORNEY Dec. 3, 1929. I BELSHAW 1,738,033

DOUGHNUT MACHINE Original Filed May 5, 1925 zsheets-sneet 2 INVENTOR Wa/fer 58/6 0 ATT'DRNEY Patented Dec. 3, 1929 WALTER BELSHAW, 0F SEATTLE, WASHINGTON DOUGHNUT MACHINE tlontinuation of application Serial No. 636,916, filed May 5, 1923. This application filed February 28, 1927.

Serial No. 171,662. r Y

The objects of my invention, generally stated, are, to provide in a doughnut machine having a hopper for dough, a pair of spaced pistons operating in conjunction with the hopper and a cylinder connected thereto, whereby annular sections of dough may be deposited into an adjacent receptacle to be tried into doughnuts; to afford at the outer terminal of said cylinder a flange to facilitate the cutting oil of the sections and prevent their clinging to the cylinder; and, to include, in connection with a separate cam and elements cooperating therewith tor impartingmovement to each of the pistons, means for adjusting one of the cams relative to the other for spacing the pistons at variable distances and thereby regulating the amount of dough to be contained in each of said sections.

Uther objects will appear as the description of the invention progresses.

This application is intended to be a continnation of my application for Letters Patent of the United States, Serial No. 636,916, filed May 5th, 1923, for a doughnut machine.

lln the accompanying drawings- Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the device, the hopper and other parts being broken away;

Fig. 2, a front elevation of the same;

Fig. 3, aside elevation showing one of said cams adjusted in a position beyond the other, including the cam levers as connected up with the rods of said pistons; said rods being shown in broken sections, and connections of the cams and levers in cross section;

Fig. 4, a vertical section of the cam assembly and driving mechanism, the handle for actuating the cams being broken away;

Fig. 5, a side elevation of the cam adjusting means, the cam lever-sand the body of the device being shown in broken sections;

Fig. 6, a detail view, partly in cross section and broken away, particularly illustrating the piston cylinder and the position of one of the pistons as it is ready to move upwardly for cutting off one of said sections of dough;

Fig. 7, a front elevation of one of said cams, the shaft on which it is excentrically mounted being shown in cross section, and a sleeve on the reverse side, with which it is prcivided, being indicated by dotted lines; anc,

Fig. 8, an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the piston cylinder, particularly showing a circumferential and outwardly extending flange disposed at the free end of said cylinder.

In the embodiment of the invention shown, the body of the device comprises a-pair of castings having complementary portions which define, when aligned and bolted to? gether, a supporting handle 1, an upper arm 2, a casing 3, disposed therebetween, in which the cams and levers are housed, and a slot 4, through which said levers operate. One of the castings just mentioned is provided with a lower arm 5 disposed approximately parallel with said upper arm, and a member 6, bolted thereto, affords in combination therewith a socket 7, circular in cross section and located adjacent the free end of said arm 5.

Ahopper 10for dough, having a shoulder 11 andcarrying an integral piston cylinder 12 at its lower end, is mounted in the arm 5 and the member 6, the shoulder being seated thereon and the cylinder supported in and extending beyond the socket, as shown in Fig. 1. The free end of said cylinder is provided with an outwardly extending and circumter:

ential flange 13 having, preferably, a thin edge, which a flared guard member let, integral with the cylinder and disposed therearound is designed to protect when the device is in use or being moved. As will be obvious, the member 6, bolted as it is in place, permits the hopper and the other instrumentali ties connected therewith to be detachably mounted in the positions just described.

A' piston rod, denoted as 20, is slidably mounted in the upper arm, and carries at its lower end a piston 21 fixedly secured thereto, said piston being provided with a circumferential groove 22, the purpose of which will hereinafter appear. A block 23, having adjacent each end a bore-like opening 2%, and on each side a centrally located and laterally extending pin 25, is fixedly secured to said piston rod, as indicated in Fig. 1. A pair of piston rods, each designated asZG, are fixedly secured to a second piston 27 and likewise I provide,

fastened to a block 28 having on each side a pin identical .with those disposed on the firstnamed block, and each are consequently given the same numerical designation, 25. The last-named piston and block slidably engage the piston rod 20, and the-pair of piston rods 26 slidably engage the block 23, through said openings 24.

A cam 30, is provided on one side of its body portion with an integral and excentrically disposed sleeve 31, and on the other side with a cam groove '32, Fig. 7. Said groove in its general form is circular, certain arcsof which, concentric with the axis on which the cam is designed to rotate, being formed into rests, designated as 33' and 34 respectively. Said cam is journaled in the casing and secured to and rotatable witha shaft 35, extending therethrough, by the pin 36, as shown in Fig. 4. A second cam 37, of the same construction as the first-named cam and its parts denoted by the same numerals, is likewise mounted in the casing and in spaced relation with the cam 30, the cam 37, however, being clamped, as will be detailed, to the driving mechanism.

A pair of cam levers, each designated as 38, are pivotally mounted within the casing, asv at 39, and extend out of the casing through the slot 4. The free end of each is bifurcated and provided with parallel slots 40 designed to straddle the pins 25 of the blocks heretofore referred to. Each of said levers carries a laterally disposed and fixedly secured pin 41, preferably of hardened steel, on which is mounted a roller 42 adapted to fit into and revolve in the groove 32 of each cam. The pins 41 should each be of a length which will approximate the thickness of the roller installed thereon and permit it to operate freely, and as the free terminal thereof is disposed inwardly of the adjacent groove, each roller may be simply slipped on its pin, the pivotal connections 39 of the cam levers cooperating to hold them in place. As is evident, the levers and parts just described, serve to link up the cams with the pistons.

To aflord convenient means for adjusting one cam relative to the other, and to facilitate the assembly of the necessary parts therefor, in connection with a crank 50, fixedly secured to the" shaft 35 and having at one end a. handle 51 and at the other end a pointer 52,- and an inwardly disposed lug 53, a clamp member 54 mounted on the sleeve 1 of the cam 37, through a circular opening 55 in the member. Said member terminates at one end in a pair of spaced cheeks 56, in which a pair of set screws 57 are threadedly mounted; said screws adapted to engage and operate upon the lug 53, as indicated in Fig. 5. A bolt 58, having a nut 59 threaded thereto, is also mounted in said cheeks, and the same afford, in cooperation with a longitudinal slot 60 disposed on either side of the circular opening 55 and indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5, means whereby the collar may be compressively secured to the sleeve of said cam. The clamp member may be provided at the other end with a scale 61, or any other suitable markings which will be useful in setting said pointer so as to produce ultimately the-required spacing between the pistons. In Fig. 5, the pointer is shown as directed to the lowest marking on the scale. As it is moved from this point along the scale, the cam 30 will be advanced relative to the other cam, and, through the connections described, the spacing between the pistons will progressively increase, said spacing serving to regulate the quantity of dough to be acted upon by the pistons at each operation.

In adjusting the device for use, the clamp member 54 having been securely fastened to the sleeve 31 of the cam 37, the set screws 57 are manipulated with reference to each other and the lug 53 which they engage so as to bring the pointer to the desired indication'on the scale. A movement imparted to the crank 50 by one of said set screws obviously serves to actuatethe pointer and communicate motion to theshaft 35 and the cam 30 fixedly secured to it, said cam being thereby rought into the position desired, as for instance, that indicates in Figs. 3 and 4. The set screws, in their adjusted positions, are then tightened upon the lug 53 so that the pointer will be maintained in the position to which it has been directed, and the cam 30, as now disposed, will extend beyond the cam 37 and, through the connections heretofore indicated, will rotate with said shaft. Said clamp, now being secured to the sleeve of the cam 37, and the set screws, tightly bearing on the lug of the crank, will permit the cam 37 to also rotate with the shaft.

When the device is thus connected up and adjusted and a quantity of suitable dough placed in the hopper, it is ready to function as a doughnut machine, by mounting it in any appropriate way over a proper receptacle containing frying material, or, by utilizing the part of the body denoted 1 as a supporting handle, it may be manually held over said receptacle, the arm 5 resting thereon.

A turn or two of the cam driving mechanism will cause the pistons to contact with the dough so that the circumferential groove 22 in the piston 21 will become filled therewith, the same serving the purposes of a piston ring and affording a close connection between said piston and the piston cylinder.

en said cams are adjusted as described and the pistons disposed in the upper limits of their movement, the piston 21 should be located in the upper portion of said cylinder, and the piston 27 should occupy a position in the hopper and above the cylinder about as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 6. On the rotation of the cams by the driving mechanism, the connections heretofore described will cause the piston 21, as it travels from said position in the cylinder, to a point adjacent the lower end thereof, to exert a suction effect on the dough, thus drawing from the hopper and into the cylinder the required quantity thereof. The piston 27 is then forced into the cylinder, through the connections which have been described, the two pistons retaining said dough between them. The said pistons now continue their movement in the cylinder until the piston 21 has passed out of the free end thereof, causing an opening between said end and the top of said piston. lVhen the required opening has been attained, the piston 21 comes to a rest for an interval and the piston 27, continuing "totravel in the cylinder, forces a round section of dough 70 through said opening, as indicated in Fig. 6. \Vhen the necessary quantity of dough has been thus expelled from the cylinder, the piston .27 stops in its downward movement, and said pistons now start upwardly, the piston 21 entering the cylinder, and in cooperation with the flange 13 thereof, an annular section of dough, suitable for a doughnut, is cut off and drops into the receptacle for cooking. Said pistons then rise through the cylinder until the piston 27 passes out of said cylinder, and the respective pistons occupy the positions-as first indicated, when a repetition of this cycle of operation will produce a like result.

From the foregoing description of the mode of operation of the device it may be noted that the cams impart to the cam arms, through the rollers connected therewith and which are mounted in and adapted to follow the cam grooves, certain movements, which, through the connections provided, are communicated to the istons. As will be evident, if the grooves o the respective cams were disposed in spaced alignment, that is, with the parts of one cam in register with the corresponding parts of the'other cam, the movements imparted to the cam levers through the rollers and communicated to the pistons, by the connectionsdescribed, would be equal at all times at any position of the crank, and the pistons would move in unison, with the consequences that the dough would be carried up and down in the cylinder, and there would be no expulsion thereof. Now by adjusting one of the cams so that one section of the groove is advanced a few degrees ahead of the like section in the other cam, it will be apparent that while one roller is in the last-named section at rest, the other roller is descending in its groove and imparting to the lower piston a movement which serves to draw dough into the cylinder. The other roller, on leaving the rest, then descends in its groove and imparts to the upper piston a downward movemet which serves to carry dough between the pistons and expel the same from the cylinder while the first-named roller has come to a rest beyond the free end conjunction with the piston operating therewith, to make a clean central cut in said section of dough, and also prevent said section from clinging exteriorly of the cylinder.

The moving parts of this machine are positive in their respective actions, and it presents a simplicity of construction, with the attendant advantages, not to be found, so far as known to me, in devices of this class.

As will be obvious to those skilled in the art, changes in and modifications of the construction described may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its advantages, hence it is desired I that I be not confined to the specific structure dough from the hopper into the cylinder,

and, in cooperation with said discharge end, deposit an annular section of dough from the cylinder, a shaft, driving mechanism therefor, a cam fixedly secured to the shaft, a second cam, rotatableon the shaft, means detachably secured to the second cam andthe driving mechanism to permit rotation of the second cam with the shaft, and whereby the first cam may be adjusted relative to the second cam for regulating the spacing between the pistons and the quantity of dough to be contained in said section, and means for operatively connecting the cams with the p1stons.-

2. In a doughnut machine, having a casing a hopper, a piston cylinder, and a pair of spaced pistons adapted to force dough from the hopper through the cylinder, a cam member, a second cam member, each provided on one side with an integral sleeve, and on the other side with an annular cam groove having a pair of oppositely disposed rest sections, said members beingjournaled in'the casing through said sleeves and located in spaced relation, a shaft extending through the sleeves, the first cam memberbeing fixedly secured to the shaft, a driving crank secured to the shaft, a clamp secured to the sleeve of the other cam member, means connected with therclamp and operating on the crank adapted to move the crank so as to adjust the first cam member relative to the second cam member, for controlling the movements of the pistons and regulating the quantity of dough to be forced through the cylinder, and to rigidly secure the crank to the clamp, and means for operatively connecting the cam members with the pistons.

3. In a doughnut machine having a hopper, a piston cylinder, and a pair of spaced pistons adapted to force dough from the hopper through the cylinder, a shaft, a grooved cam member rotatable with the shaft, a second grooved cam member having a sleeve rotatable on the shaft and disposed in spaced relation with the first cam member, means for operatively connecting the cam members with the pistons, a crank, carrying at one end a handle and at the other end a pointer, fiX- edly secured to one end of the shaft, a clamp, secured to the sleeve of the second cam member, having indicia adapted to cooperate with the pointer in determining the adjustment of the first cam member relative to the second cam member, for regulating the spacing between the pistons and the quantity of dough to be forced through the cylinder, and means for detachably securing the crank to the clamp.

4. In a doughnut machine having a hopper, a piston cylinder, and a pair of spaced pistons adapted to force dough from the hopper through the cylinder, means for controlling the movements of'the pistons and regulating the quantity of dough to be forced through the cylinder, comprising a shaft, a cam rotatable with the shaft, a second cam rotatable on the shaft, means for operatively connecting the cams with the pistons, driving mechanism for the shaft, a clamp secured to the second cam, and means for adjustably securing the driving mechanism to the clamp and v .whereby the first cam may be progressively advanced beyond the second cam.

5. In a doughnut machine having a hOpper, a piston cylinder, and a pair of spaced 7 In a doughnut machine having piston means for discharging dough therefrom, a hopper, a piston cylinder communicating with the discharge end of the hopper, a flange extending circumferentially and laterally of the free end of the cylinder and havinga thin edge, and a guard for the flange, integral with the cylinder.

8. In a doughnut machine having piston means for forcing dough therefrom, a hopper, and a piston cylinder communicating with the hopper and providing a discharge end therefor, a flange disposed adjacent the free end of the cylinder and extending exteriorly and circumferentially thereof, de

fining in cross section, a flat lateral section located in the same plane as the free end of the cylinder, and a beveled portion extending from the section and merging into the outer peripheryof the cylinder, said section and portion conjointly forming a thin and circumferential edge portion on the flange.

9. In a doughnut machine having piston means for discharging dough therefrom and a hopper, a piston cylinder communicating with the discharge end of the hopper, said cylinder being provided with an outer free end having a circumferential cutting edge, and a flared guard member-for said edge overhanging said free end of the cylinder.

. WALTER BELSHAW.

pistons adapted to force dough from the hopper through the cylinder, a power shaft, a grooved cam rotatable therewith, a second grooved cam rotatable on the shaft, means for operativelyconnecting the cams with the pistons, driving mechanism for the cams connected with the shaft, means for. detachably securing the second cam to the driving mechanism, and whereby one cam may be adjusted relative to the other cam for controlling the movements of the pistons and regulating the quantity of dough to be forced through the cylinder. I

6. In a doughnut machine having piston means for forcing dough therefrom, a hopper, a piston cylinder communicating with the hopper and providing a discharge end therefor, said end terminating in a circumferential and outwardly extending flange, adapted, in cooperation with a piston operating therethrough, to out a central opening in a section of dough discharged from the cylinder and form an air space between the cylinder and the section to prevent said section from clinging exteriorly of the cylinder. 

